An Ill-Fated Fall into Pansi Cave (28)

Meanwhile, Heavenly King Li returned to the Cloud Tower Palace.

Wukong waited outside Lingxiao Hall for several quarters of an hour, but Heavenly King Li did not return, and he did not know what Heavenly King Li had gone to do.

Wukong was an impatient person to begin with, and with a day in Heaven being equivalent to a year on earth, he couldn't wait any longer, so he went into the palace himself to pay his respects to the Jade Emperor.

When the Celestial Worthy Jade Emperor saw Wukong approaching, he smiled and said:

"Wukong, you've arrived. Have you already vanquished the Demon and rescued your master?"

Wukong bowed and said, "Your Majesty, the Demon has not yet been defeated. That Demon possesses a Supernatural Ability of Golden Light and yellow mist, which trapped me and Third Prince Nezha, inside, and we were both defeated. Heavenly King Li was also knocked to the ground by a whip. I escaped by trickery. Because I saw that the Demon feared lightning, I went to Heaven with Heavenly King Li. I beg Your Majesty to send the Thunder Department Heavenly Lord Divine General to help Subduing Demons."

Upon hearing this Celestial Worthy Jade Emperor asked, "Where is Heavenly King Li?"

Wukong said, "Heavenly King Li has gone home for the time being."

Upon hearing this, the Celestial Worthy Jade Emperor immediately dispatched six Heavenly Lords from the Thunder Department —Qin, Zhao, Dong, Yuan, Yao, and Zhang—to the Lower Realm to assist him.

Wukong thanked him repeatedly.

Before long, the six Heavenly Lords of the Thunder Department arrived as ordered.

Wukong said, "It's been many days since I last saw you, Six Heavenly Lords. I pay my respects."

Heavenly Lord Qin laughed and said, "Great Sage, you often go to Heaven, why be so polite? I heard that the Demon fears heavenly thunder, so he summoned us to come and help him?"

Wukong said, "That's right. The Demon looked fearful when he saw the thunder and lightning. I can tell he's afraid of thunder and lightning, so I came to invite you celestial Heavenly Lords. There's no time to lose, please come down to the Old Sun Lower Realm with me."

The six Heavenly Lords, upon hearing this, did not move. Heavenly Lord Qin said:

"Great Sage, as the saying goes, 'A snake cannot move without a head, and an army cannot advance without a general.' His Majesty has ordered Heavenly King Li to lead the Subduing Demons. We are merely assisting from the sidelines and should not overstep our bounds. Let us wait for Heavenly King Li to arrive before descending to the Lower Realm together."

Wukong thought that made sense, but he couldn't wait any longer, so he said, "Then let's go to the Cloud Tower Palace to find Heavenly King Li."

All six Heavenly Lords agreed.

The group arrived at the Cloud Tower Palace.

At that time, Heavenly King Li was shirtless in the palace, having his wife apply Immortal Medicine to him.

The reason he couldn't bear the whipping wounds was because he was too weak to continue. If he went to the palace with Wukong and the immortals noticed, wouldn't he lose all face?

Therefore, he made an excuse to go home, wanting to heal his injuries first before going to the palace.

However, the whip marks were not something that could be healed by ordinary Immortal Medicine.

Despite having applied a thick layer of the Immortal Medicine, Heavenly King Li was still in excruciating pain, especially in his back, which was so painful that he couldn't help but cry out in agony.

Hearing the sound, Xiao Zhenying came out and saw her father in pain. Heartbroken, she quickly took out a small box from her bosom, opened it to reveal several colorful Elixir Pills, and held them high, saying:

"Father, quickly take the Elixir Pills; it will heal your injuries!"

Seeing his daughter witness his pain, Heavenly King Li felt he had lost his authority and angrily said, "How dare you! Is this a place for your nonsense? Have you finished your homework for today?"

Xiao Zhenying hurriedly said, "Father, I've finished my homework for today. I only came out to check on you because I heard you cry out in pain! Father, please take your Elixir Pills quickly!"

When Heavenly King Li heard his daughter say that she was in pain, he became even more furious and scolded, "Nonsense! Where would you Elixir Pills at such a young age!"

Xiao Zhenying said, "Father, it was given to me by Older Brother True Lord!"

Heavenly King Li asked, "Is it Perfected Lord Taixi?"

Xiao Zhenying said, "That's right."

Upon hearing this, Heavenly King Li became even angrier, shoving the box open and scattering the Elixir Pills all over the ground, cursing:

"You good-for-nothing! That Perfected Lord Taixi is a subject of the Queen Mother of the West, even I treat him with respect. How dare you, a mere commoner, be so disrespectful, addressing him as 'elder brother'? And you even accepted his Elixir Pills for no reason? How have I taught you all this time? Quickly! Return them to him! Otherwise, I will disown you as my daughter!"

Xiao Zhenying tearfully picked up the Elixir Pills, saying:

"Father, you have misunderstood your daughter! I dare not presume to do so. It was only because the True Lord addressed my Older Brother as 'brother' that I addressed him as 'Older Brother.' The Elixir Pills was not something I received for nothing. It was given to me by the True Lord because True Lord was tending the furnace and fanning the fire. I dare not use it normally, but seeing that Father King is seriously injured, I offer it to Father King."

Upon hearing this, Heavenly King Li was somewhat moved. Just then, the pain struck, more intense than usual, causing him to cry out in agony.

Xiao Zhenying quickly said, "Father, please eat."

Upon hearing this, Heavenly King Li looked at the Elixir Pills and thought that Perfected Lord Taixi had some alchemy skills. If he took these pills, they might really cure him. However, he had just pushed the Elixir Pills on the ground. If he took them now, wouldn't he lose his fatherly dignity?

Just as they were struggling with this, a sound came from outside, and they heard Wukong say from afar:

"Heavenly King Li! Heavenly King Li! I and the Thunder Department Heavenly Lords have come to see you!"

Upon hearing this, Heavenly King Li was startled, thinking to himself that if the Thunder Department's Heavenly Lords saw him in this state, he would lose face completely and wouldn't even be able to attend next year's Peach Banquet.

It's better to lose face at home than in public, so Heavenly King Li quickly took the pill box from Xiao Zhenying's hand and asked, "Good child, which one do you want to eat?"

Xiao Zhenying said, "Father is badly injured, please eat it all!"

Upon hearing this, Heavenly King Li swallowed the pills, and instantly his Fleshly Body, Divine Soul, and magical power were all nourished, his injuries were quickly relieved, and the pain gradually subsided.

Wukong and the others had already gone outside and called out, "Heavenly King, come out quickly! What are you doing hiding inside?"

Heavenly King Li quickly dressed and came out.

Wukong laughed and said, "Where has the Heavenly King been? I've been calling you for ages and you still haven't come out?"

Heavenly King Li bowed to the crowd and said, "I was injured while Subduing Demons a demon, and fearing that my wounds were in a sorry state, I might have disturbed Your Majesty by coming to the palace. That's why I returned home to apply medicine. Now that my injuries have healed, I can come to the palace to report to Your Majesty."

Wukong laughed and said, "No need. I have already petitioned His Majesty and invited the six Heavenly Lords of the Thunder Department. We are just waiting for the Heavenly King to the Lower Realm the mortal realm together."

Upon hearing this, Heavenly King Li immediately went down to the Lower Realm with Wukong.

Upon arriving in the Lower Realm, Wukong and his companions rode on clouds and stood atop the Yellow Flower Temple. Qin, Zhao, Dong, Yuan, Yao, and Zhang then used their divine powers.

In an instant, clouds stretched to the southeast, fog rose to the northwest, and lightning flashed obliquely, resembling dragons and snakes.

Bajie and the others hid below. Nezha saw the strange phenomenon in the Heaven and said, "It must be that the Great Sage has summoned the Thunder Department Divine Weapon. I will go to heaven to help."

After saying this, Nezha kicked off his Wind Fire Wheels, leaving two streaks of fire in his wake, and ascended into the sky.

Upon reaching the Heaven, they indeed found Wukong and the others.

Wukong said, "Third Prince, let's go down and challenge the Demon!"

Nezha agreed, and the two went to the front of Yellow Flower Temple to challenge each other.

The Many-Eyed Monster and the Spider Demon demons came out to fight.

After several exchanges, the Many-Eyed Monster removed its clothes, releasing Golden Light and yellow mist.

Wukong hurriedly said, "Heavenly Lords, quickly bring thunder! Quickly bring thunder!"

No sooner had the words left his mouth than a loud, thunderous roar shook the mountains and rivers, causing High Mountain Hua to collapse.

The Many-Eyed Monster was terrified, and the Spider Demon demons were filled with fear, so they hurriedly fled backward.

Another clap of thunder sounded in the Heaven.

They fled to the left, only to be met with another clap of thunder.

They fled to the right, only to be met with another clap of thunder.

Lightning flashed wildly, and thunder roared powerfully.

The Many-Eyed Monster and the Spider Demon demons could not escape from any direction. Under the Divine Thunder, they trembled all over and lay on the ground, transforming into their Original Form: seven spiders the size of baskets and a giant centipede seven feet long.

Wukong laughed, "So it was these poisonous creatures causing the trouble!"

Nezha nodded and said, "These Yin Insects are most afraid of heavenly thunder. As the ancients said, 'They will freeze when they encounter thunder.'"

Heavenly King Li ordered, "Chop the Demon into Powder!"

Upon hearing this, the Many-Eyed Monster hurriedly cried out, "Your Great King, save me!"

Ao Tu came out upon hearing the sound, and Lei Guang automatically stepped aside upon seeing him.

Seven Spider Demon hurriedly scrambled over, clinging to Ao Tu's legs, hands, waist, front, and back, and cried out in unison, "Your Great King, they have gone too far! We beg Your Great King to avenge us!"